Limit Break
by Feni
Summary: "Is this what you call living?" In Otou, Kurogane gets his first true look at the man behind the cracking mask. Fai's breaking, and only Kurogane can do anything about it.


**A/N:** This is basically a 'what happened between the scenes'/Kurogane POV thing. As you can see from the summary, it starts in Otou because that arc is the **best **and will continue through the end of the anime and the OVAs.

Kudos to you if you know what the title is taken from. =3

**Warnings:** These scenes are taken from the **ANIME**, which means that some are non-canon to the manga. Usually I'd see this as blasphemy, but there are a ton of Kuro/Fai scenes that work well here. I'm using the quotes directly from the subtitles and/or the English Dub of the official DVDs. I also use Japanese honorifics and the original terms (ex: _oni_ instead of demon), to stay true to the original series.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles.

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><p><strong>Limit Break<strong>

**Written by Fenikkusu**

**Chapter 1 – A Resolution to Live**

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><p>The moment Fai screamed, Kurogane chanced a glance over his own shoulder. That's what the idiot got for dodging the demons' attacks instead of fighting back. There was something in the way Fai crumpled against the rubble that made something in the warrior's heart clench, though. Kurogane tightened his grip on his sword and grit his teeth as he made his way in front of the fallen magician—well who could really call him a magician if he refused to use his magic?<p>

He faced at least four of these demons. As their eyes began to glow, Kurogane pulled back and released a wave of power that effectively sliced each demon in half. He smirked in victory until he heard a distinctive 'clang' to his right. Glancing to his right, he saw his katana broken in two.

Then he heard clapping. Kurogane took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Now that's the Kuro-sama I know." Fai placed his left leg down and grimaced as he tried to put pressure on his ankle. "My leg feels a little strange. But I'm not going to die from it, so I'll manage."

Kurogane had enough. He pulled his sheath from his belt and held it to Fai. The wizard's façade cracked as he stared up at the warrior with wide blue eyes and mouth agape. Kurogane glared and said, "Is this what you call living? It's not that you **won't** die from it, but that you **can't** die." Fai continued to stare with that completely dumbfounded look on his face. A light tap of the sheath against Fai's injured ankle made the blonde groan again. _**You're hiding again, **_Kurogane thought with a sour taste in his mouth. _**And I'll be damned to let this opportunity slip away.**_

"I'll kill anybody who tries to take me down." Kurogane didn't make any eye contact as he raised his head. "I'll also kill anybody who tries to steal what I've set out to protect with my life. I've lost count of how many I've killed already." If Kurogane looked down, he would have seen how Fai's bangs shadowed his eyes. The _shinobi_ **knew** that Fai was hiding something, and if Kurogane had to reveal a bit of his past to get the wizard to as well, so be it.

Kurogane continued, "I'm not even gonna try to sugarcoat it. However…" The warrior trailed before glaring down at Fai. "There's nothing in this world I hate more…" He used the tip of the sheath to tilt Fai's head up so that they locked gazes. Damn, he couldn't read the plethora of emotions swimming in those cerulean orbs. "Than those who take their lives for granted."

There was a short silence before a sad smile appeared on Fai's face. This wasn't one of those cheesy grins he always wore around the children and the Manjuu-bun. The sadness lacing the wizard's next words caused another part of Kurogane's supposed non-existent heart to crack.

"In that case, I must be the type of person you hate the most," Fai answered, closing his eyes. The mask was back in place.

Kurogane didn't answer.

Fai just plastered that ridiculous grin on his face as he tried to sit up, still favoring his left ankle. Kurogane rolled his eyes and grabbed the mage's left arm. Fai's eyes widened again as he was hauled up onto his feet. Kurogane ignored the sudden stiffness in the other man as he half-dragged Fai to the café the information lady directed them to.

_**I may be an ass, but I'm not a heartless bastard,**_ Kurogane thought as they continued onwards. It wasn't long until they both made it to the café, as they hadn't made it too far before they were attacked. Kurogane unceremoniously dropped Fai onto a barstool. The blonde refused to meet his gaze. The warrior figured that Fai was trying to think of some excuse for letting his persona slip earlier, but it was too late. Kurogane had suspicions from the beginning of the journey, and this was merely the icing on top of the cake.

A woman with white hair asked if they wanted a drink, and Fai casually ordered a tiny thing. The bartender gladly obliged and asked why they were there. "My… friend and I are here to gather some info. Eri-chan sent us, right?" Fai began, looking over at Kurogane.

The _shinobi _grunted an affirmative and rested his chin on an upturned palm. He didn't miss the hesitation when Fai said the word 'friend,' but he wouldn't question the blonde… yet. In the meantime, Kurogane would make the mage do all the talking; he wasn't one for fancy words, and interrogation was all about manipulating words.

"What? The information monger, Eri-chan, sent you here?" the bartender asked.

"That's right. So you see, bartender-san…"

"You can call me Caldina," she interrupted with a smile.

"In that case, Caldina-chan…" Fai went on, "we want to talk to the person who saw a new type of demon."

"You can't do that."

Kurogane opened his eyes, annoyed. The woman had her hands on her hips and a smug look on her face. Fai, on the other hand, looked genuinely shocked. _**You're losing your touch, wizard. **_"Why not?" the warrior asked.

"If you want to meet that person, then you'll have to come a little earlier," Caldina finished, glancing at the stage. Both Kurogane and Fai followed her gaze. So the person who saw the demon was a singer, huh. They would have to listen to her sing, most likely. Wonderful.

"We're leaving," he muttered. He took a step forward, standing in front of the mage. No response. "Huh? Get up," Kurogane reiterated. He leaned down to see what was wrong and noticed a glaze hiding the bright color of the wizard's eyes. _**He's having some kind of flashback…**_ Without another word looped Fai's arm over his shoulders, paid for the drink, and headed out.

"Mage," Kurogane grunted, shaking him a bit as they walked. "Snap out of it."

"Fai…" the blonde whispered brokenly, still hanging limp.

_**Why would he be saying his own name like that? **_Time for a different tactic. If the Princess saw him like this, she'd only worry. The Kid would too. They hadn't been to too many countries yet, but they were starting to grow on Kurogane.

And as much as he hated to admit it, Fai was too.

"You don't want them to see you like this," Kurogane tried with another forceful shake. "All that work for naught." This time there was no reaction. The warrior huffed. _**What else could I… **_

"Fai."

At the sound of his own name, the blonde snapped his head up. "What just… Oh, Kuro-wanwan! Weren't we just talking to Caldina-chan?" So he didn't remember anything from when he went into that trance-like state. _**Interesting, **_Kurogane thought as they rounded the corner to the Cat's Eye.

The black one's usual stern face returned as he saw the Kids and some other people standing in front of the café. The Princess was holding a first aid kit. Was there some kind of fight? At least they could hold their own without him.

"We're back!" Fai exclaimed with a happy tone. Kurogane resisted the urge to smack the mage. Instead, the _shinobi_ settled for his usual scowl. It must have made an interesting picture to see the wizard draped over him like that. Technically, Kurogane didn't need to have his hand around Fai's waist since he was fully conscious, but he kept on convincing himself it was merely for support.

"We were attacked by an _oni_, and I made a **teensy** mistake," Fai continued with a sheepish grin.

_**Teensy my ass,**_ Kurogane thought to himself, glaring at nothing in particular. _**He would've been killed if I wasn't there.**_

"Who's this? A customer?" Fai asked. Kurogane blinked out of his thoughts and unceremoniously dropped Fai to the ground. He didn't pay attention to Fai's cry of surprise.

"Souma! What the hell… are you doing here?" Kurogane exclaimed. He thought of the day the Princess sent him on this journey in the first place. He wasn't about to forgive her anytime soon, but he did continue to worry about his master. It was his job, after all. "Is Tomoyo-hime with you?"

The idiot _ninja_ just looked at him with wide eyes. "Uh… I am indeed Souma, but I do believe this is the first time we've met…"

Kurogane blinked again. "Eh?" He decided to leave the issue be, for now. He shook his head and walked into the café, ignoring the stares the other people gave him. Kurogane caught sight of the Kid bandaging up Fai's sprained ankle.

"That should take care of it!" Syaoran exclaimed with a little smile.

Fai grinned in return. "Thanks! And thanks for taking care of the café too!"

"Mokona worked hard too!" Kurogane rolled his eyes at the _manjuu _bun. He did perk up at the Kid's next question, though.

"Did you find out anything about the person who saw the new breed of _oni_?"

Fai turned serious, "Well, as luck would have it, we just missed her. So, we didn't get to speak with him."

"I see," Syaoran replied.

Kurogane sighed and placed his head on his upturned palm, clearly annoyed. His expression didn't change when Sakura walked up behind him. "Souma-san, the Demon Hunter, must look exactly like the Souma-san you knew back in your country, Kurogane-san," the Princess said, attempting to sweeten his sour mood. The aforementioned man merely closed his eyes and sighed.

"Kurogane was so surprised, he dropped Fai!" Mokona chirped. That got a laugh out of everyone, even the damn wizard.

_**I did **__not__** drop him, **__manjuu-bun_. "Shut up," Kurogane growled out. Fai's mask was back, and that only irked Kurogane even more. Nevertheless, he hid his true annoyance behind his irked countenance.

"I guess it's true that they exist in a variety of worlds," the magician began. Kurogane opened one eye and glanced back at the blonde. "These 'same but different people' that the Dimensional Witch was talking about." Fai closed his eyes in thought. "We may still meet more of them. People who we've met in our original worlds."

Kurogane didn't miss the way the kids stared at him in shock. They were probably thinking along the same lines as him. _**How do you know so much, mage? You obviously know more than you're letting on. **_Another reason why he'd need to keep a closer eye on the idiot. He got up and sat outside, crossing his arms. Kurogane needed to think.

"Kurogane-san?" he heard from behind him a few minutes later. He opened his eyes and allowed the kid to sit next to him on the steps of the Cat's Eye.

"Apparently, you need a weapon here to defeat an _oni_ that is ranked above a certain level," Syaoran began, staring forward.

"So I hear…" the warrior replied, expression unchanging.

It was then that the Kid turned to him. "Can you… please teach me how to use a sword?"

Kurogane didn't meet his gaze. Silence enveloped them then. Swordsmanship was no easy road, and there have been times when truly despicable people learned how to wield a blade for the wrong reasons. It wasn't like Kurogane thought Syaoran was one of those evil people, but Kurogane was interested in the true reason why Syaoran wanted to learn. "Is this… so you can live?"

"It's so I can do what I've set out to do in my life," Syaoran answered.

Remembering himself giving a similar answer a long time ago, Kurogane turned to meet the Kid's gaze. The determination set within them was obvious. The _shinobi_ knew from the beginning that Syaoran would do anything to collect the princess' feathers and therefore her soul with it, but this determination was on a whole different level. To be willing to pick up a blade, to risk his own life, to spill blood in order to protect the one he loved the most…

The warrior knew the feeling all too well.

He narrowed his crimson eyes as memories flashed through his mind. Kurogane was sure that same determination shone in his own when he trained to protect his mother and the people of Suwa.

"This is serious business, Syaoran-kun." His thoughts were interrupted by the mage. _**Butting in again. You don't mind getting into other peoples' business, but if someone tries to ask about you, you clam up like some turtle.**_ _**Coward.**_ "If you're going to ask Kuro-rin to teach you, then you'd better be prepared to kill anyone who tries to take you down, or tires to steal what you've set out to protect with your life," Fai warned.

_**So you have a memory after all. Probably won't take those words to heart. Idiot,**_ Kurogane thought, staring forward once again.

"But I'm sure you'll be able to do it... After all, you're someone who has made the choice to live. You're not one who runs from your problems," the wizard finished.

"Fai-san," Syaoran started.

"Enough said," Kurogane cut in. _**I'm sick of your games. You don't need to involve the Kid in this too. **_The _shinobi_ turned to Syaoran. "Be ready to risk your life."

Syaoran smiled and nodded. "I am."

As the _sakura_ petals drifted to the ground in front of the shop, Kurogane couldn't help but wonder where everything would go from here.


End file.
